Toward Decline
Why US and China are watching Philippines’ Marcos Jnr at Russia-Asean talks
Why it matters
Philippines' diplomatic balancing act—maintaining ASEAN centrality while deepening US security ties—reveals fragility of Indo-Pacific alliance cohesion under great-power competition. Marcos' Russia engagement signals potential soft defection pathways that China and Russia may exploit to fracture the US-led regional order that Australia depends upon.
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